Neonatal (newborn) Intensive Care Unit (NICU)

Meet Tanya Wagner. Officially she is a Registered Dietitian specially trained to promote growth and development in premature and critically ill infants. We just call her our “Baby Nutritionist.” She helps our frail and often fragile “preemie” and other tiniest babies develop into Rock Stars! You may never actually meet her but you can be assured that every NICU baby has her as a personal “consultant” at Saint Elizabeth! And some moms too---even before their baby is born, so those babies will be as healthy as possible when they are born.

Baby Grant Drummer is a Rock Star!

He was born more than a month early—but his parents Dave and Elaine have watched hi as he made phenomenal growth and development. Baby Grant (and every NICU baby) even has his own personal daily nutritional and growth chart that Tanya uses to help track his development right up to the time he goes home with his mom and dad. That’s a special step we take for our Saint Elizabeth Rock Stars.

While many hospitals in the US have nutritionists on staff who can be called in to consult on some babies Saint Elizabeth has taken this a step further with our dedicated maternal-infant dietitian who consults on EVERY NICU baby. This is also a Lincoln “first.”

Rock Star Aubrie-Born @ 1 pound

Most babies in the NICU are born weeks or even months early, like Baby Aubrie Snell of Crete, born at 27 weeks gestation---or nearly four months early! She weighed only 1 pound, 11 ounces at birth but has gained Rock Star status having grown in two months to be right at 4 pounds now! Assistance from both our “Baby Nutritionist” (on the right in the photo) and Baby Aubrie’s nurse Missy Gehle were part of the specialized NICU teamwork it took to make sure she---and all our other tiniest of patients---develop as well as possible.

“The third trimester of pregnancy is when the majority of nutrient stores are built up,” explains Tanya “So our babies come to us already deficient or they will be shortly if we aren't able to provide for them.”

We have a “Milk Bank”

Baby Aubrie also got help from someone she will never know thanks to the Saint Elizabeth Milk Bank. Tanya tells us that while mom’s own breast milk is what is preferred for each baby, there are times when mommies can’t produce enough milk or are on medications that should not be passed on to their newborns via their breast milk. For those NICU situations---we have some very “Special Delivery” milk.

Saint Elizabeth has a signed contract with a “Milk Bank” in Ohio that uses very stringent screening standards, to deliver frozen breast milk from caring donors. Parents have the option to use this potentially life-saving alternative for their newborn. This helps assure that baby’s nutritional (and protective antibody) needs are met to the very best extent possible!